1.15.2009

Seattle's 2009 draft class

Akron’s 20 year old wunderkind Steve Zakuani was the first overall pick and first college player selected in Sounders history. The striker drew tremendous praise from many at the draft, including (not surprisingly) Adrian Hanauer. The Sounders general manager said of his new forward, “He’s got all the tools, a great pedigree, grew up in the Arsenal youth system, obviously had a very good college career and we think has the potential to be very explosive and a very exciting player.” Zakuani also is a Generation Adidas player, and his salary will not count against the meager MLS cap. Since he is rumored to be making upwards of 150k a year, a lot for any MLS player, this is hugely important for Seattle, as it allows them to use that money on other players.

The other three players are all seniors. Evan Brown was chosen in the second round. He is a right back out of soccer powerhouse Wake Forest who is solid defensively, but still excels at getting forward and joining in the attack. He has drawn comparisons to Frankie Hejduk, the prototypical MLS defender who can play a role on offense as well.

Jared Karkas, the third round selection, is a left back out of little Azusa Pacific University. A left footed player, he is otherwise similar in skill and style to Brown, although his play came against much easier opposition. With only 5 total defenders on the Sounders roster, both Karkas and Brown figure to be in competition for one of the 20 roster spots.

The fourth round selection was Harvard’s Michael Fucito. He was talked about little leading up to the draft. Another left footed player, Fucito can line up either in the midfield or at forward. Although his Harvard pedigree is probably indicative of his smarts, he likely will end up as one of the Sounders’ four Developmental Roster players.